Shayla and I got an awesome opportunity to go to dinner with an amazing couple from the D.C. area tonight. It was great to catch up on life and to be able to talk about the state of the church in the U.S. as well as what we are going to be doing in Ft. Lauderdale by launching Coastal Community Church. At the end of the night the couple said that they would like to help us launch this church and committed to partnering with us financially. God is so amazing how he just puts things together with people and does the work Himself. We had no intentions of making a request for help tonight but God just went ahead and made His own way. I love being on God’s plan for our life. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” That is what we are doing, trusting God and trying to not lean on what we know but what His will and purpose is for our lives. We are “Consumed by the Call” that God has for our lives. Thanks for praying and believing with us for God to do greater things this year in our lives.

I am preparing for our upcoming weekend in our series 30 Days to Live at Bayside Community Church. I am excited to share because we will be talking about the importance of relationship in our life and if we only had 30 days to live how would we act towards the relationships that are currently in our life and how would we venture out into new life giving relationships. I am so pumped about this that I haven’t been able to think straight for a week now. I love the relationships that are in my life and this has challenged me personally to look at those friends and say to myself how could I show them how much I care today, not tomorrow or even the next day but today. Look forward to seeing you this weekend at one our four services.

We are so excited about the opportunity that we have at Monarch High School to launch Coastal Community Church. We took these pictures so we could just imagine what it will look like in September of 2009 when we launch the church. We are thrilled to have found this 550 seat auditorium with theatre seating, great children’s area and perfect location. Please be praying with us as we speak with the principal of the school about securing this location for the church. We are believing God for a long term lease at a good price as well as favor in the classroom space for our children’s ministry. Thank you so much for your prayers.

Just started fasting for the new year on Sunday. I am really excited to see what God is going to say to Shayla and I as we give up food for the next 21 days to see what He wants in our lives. We are believing that God is going to reveal some clear direction and vision into our hearts as well as confirming the path we are walking on now. It is exciting to be following the passion that God has put into our hearts with reckless abandon, knowing that He is in control and we just have to pursue without fear. God is going to do amazing things.

We have decided to move forward on a combination of the 2nd and 3rd logo’s. Matt Reed at Black Box Media is doing an amazing job at putting together this logo for Coastal Community Church. I am pumped to see what the final logo looks like so we can start branding our image everywhere in Ft. Lauderdale.

I had the pleasure of hanging out with lead pastor Matt Keller of Next Level Church in Ft. Myers Florida. It was awesome to be able to spend time with a pastor who is really interested in seeing the next generation of leaders and church planters raised up. I came away with some great ideas and thoughts concerning the pre-launch phase and what takes place as well as a schedule for the first couple of months on series ideas to really facilitate growth.

One of the things that really caught my attention in talking with Matt was this statement to position people with opportunities to have positive conversations with those in the community by meeting a felt need and talking about the upcoming launch of Coastal Community Church.

I believe that in life you only grow by the books you read and the people you hang around with, and I am blessed to have some unbelievable relationships in my life.